--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: War and ceasefire There was a war…" description: "\"“War and ceasefire There was a war followed by a ceasefire, Swaths of land lay covered in ashes and dead men and women, Beside them lay still unfilled ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/javid-ahmad-tak-22175_best-war-poems_war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-follow_2301882.jpg" --- # War and ceasefire There was a war followed by a ceasefire… ![“War and ceasefire There was a war followed by a ceasefire, Swaths of land lay covered in ashes and dead men and women, Beside them lay still unfilled dreams and many a desire, Wherever one looked there appeared no end to them then, Because a country defeated in war, Enters into the state of…” quote by Javid Ahmad Tak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/javid-ahmad-tak-22175_best-war-poems_war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-follow_2301882.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/javid-ahmad-tak-22175_best-war-poems_war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-follow_2301882.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/javid-ahmad-tak-22175_best-war-poems_war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-follow_2301882.jpg) > ““War and ceasefire There was a war followed by a ceasefire, Swaths of land lay covered in ashes and dead men and women, Beside them lay still unfilled dreams and many a desire, Wherever one looked there appeared no end to them then, Because a country defeated in war, Enters into the state of passive spirit, Where to the victor, spirited men and women of the defeated country appear too few and too far, And they rush to assume this is it, their end, and the end of it! Followed by two immediate actions, Repatriation by the winning side, And reparation by the losing side while dealing with endless sanctions, And behind them their lost spirits hide, But as years pass by and time grows older, The defeated side realises the losses it suffered, The men it lost, and the women who fought in ways bolder, And the living ones, the paying ones, look at their spirits battered, And they hear echoes from the past, Few calling a mother, few a father, many a brother, a sister and a lost lover, And then the ship of agony and pain hoists its broad mast, And the left one, the still and forever paying one, is forced to become an avenger, Because he/she misses the person to whom these echoes belong, He/she struggles to deal with the past that haunts him/her in the present, And to deal with this belligerent self, he/she hums the firebird’s song, And finally with hatred and lament he/she is pregnant, And when the feeling is born, The defeated spirit rises from the ashes, And begins to sew together the feelings that lie scattered on the ground, mutilated and torn, With these feelings of hatred and vengeance now his/her spirit gushes, The silent ground that had been the graveyard of dreams and desires, Suddenly turns into a war zone once again, So those who say peace can be brokered are cynical liars, Because one who is dead can never be brought back again, And thus the battle between revenge and avenging deaths enters a new phase, Where the defeated side now fearlessly marches forth, Because it has nothing to lose now it has no more ghosts to chase, And thus is born the one who loves romancing the sun, the killer moth, And it stings all alike, and it flies freely everywhere, Until both sides accept defeat, Then they begin to dig graves to bury a hope here, a wish there, and someone’s desire somewhere, And somewhere lies the lover who his/her beloved could not meet, And then is born the curse of unfulfilled wishes, desires, hopes and life’s darling affairs, Now both sides lie in ruin because there is no ground left to bury the dead, And the sound of echoes keeps growing and the ground turns wet with tears, It is then the spirit forsakes them all, because genuine valour does not reside in places where courage on death is fed, And as time grows older there are no more bold men and women left, Because it is a diabolic ground where only echoes from the past haunt all, Where all are victims of a different kind of theft, That of humanity’s actual fall!”” [Javid Ahmad Tak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javid-ahmad-tak/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poem describes the cyclical trauma of war, where defeat fuels vengeance, leading to endless conflict and the impossibility of true peace. **In simple terms:** War leaves lasting hatred that breeds more war. Key Takeaway Recognize and break cycles of revenge. Themes war revenge trauma peace memory Mood somber reflective Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - post‑war societies - reconciliation processes - personal healing - policy making - education Key Concepts psychology history conflict resolution Questions to Reflect On - How can societies heal collective trauma? - What actions prevent revenge cycles? A Different Perspective Even with forgiveness, deep wounds may persist and reignite violence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Inspirational quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational-quotes/) [Life quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-quotes/) [Life-changing-quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-changing-quotes/) [Men and women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-and-women/) [Old men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old-men/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [War zone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war-zone/) ## Related quotes > [“War and ceasefire There was a war followed by a ceasefire, Land covered in ash, dead men and women, Beside the dead were unfulfilled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javid-ahmad-tak/war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-followed-by-a-ceasefire-land/) [Javid Ahmad Tak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javid-ahmad-tak/) > [“War and peace Humanity has fought many wars, But won none, Because even in peace the victors carry its scars, That they can share…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javid-ahmad-tak/war-and-peace-humanity-has-fought-many-wars-but-won-none-because-even/) [Javid Ahmad Tak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javid-ahmad-tak/) > [“A bomb here and a bullet there A bomb here and a bullet there, A wall riddled with bullets everywhere, A man dead, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javid-ahmad-tak/a-bomb-here-and-a-bullet-there-a-bomb-here-and-a-bullet-there-a-wall/) [Javid Ahmad Tak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javid-ahmad-tak/) > [“When a country is defeated, there remain only mountains and rivers, and on a ruined castle in spring only grasses thrive. 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Followed by two immediate actions, Repatriation by the winning side, And reparation by the losing side while dealing with endless sanctions, And behind them their lost spirits hide, But as years pass by and time grows older, The defeated side realises the losses it suffered, The men it lost, and the women who fought in ways bolder, And the living ones, the paying ones, look at their spirits battered, And they hear echoes from the past, Few calling a mother, few a father, many a brother, a sister and a lost lover, And then the ship of agony and pain hoists its broad mast, And the left one, the still and forever paying one, is forced to become an avenger, Because he/she misses the person to whom these echoes belong, He/she struggles to deal with the past that haunts him/her in the present, And to deal with this belligerent self, he/she hums the firebird’s song, And finally with hatred and lament he/she is pregnant, And when the feeling is born, The defeated spirit rises from the ashes, And begins to sew together the feelings that lie scattered on the ground, mutilated and torn, With these feelings of hatred and vengeance now his/her spirit gushes, The silent ground that had been the graveyard of dreams and desires, Suddenly turns into a war zone once again, So those who say peace can be brokered are cynical liars, Because one who is dead can never be brought back again, And thus the battle between revenge and avenging deaths enters a new phase, Where the defeated side now fearlessly marches forth, Because it has nothing to lose now it has no more ghosts to chase, And thus is born the one who loves romancing the sun, the killer moth, And it stings all alike, and it flies freely everywhere, Until both sides accept defeat, Then they begin to dig graves to bury a hope here, a wish there, and someone’s desire somewhere, And somewhere lies the lover who his/her beloved could not meet, And then is born the curse of unfulfilled wishes, desires, hopes and life’s darling affairs, Now both sides lie in ruin because there is no ground left to bury the dead, And the sound of echoes keeps growing and the ground turns wet with tears, It is then the spirit forsakes them all, because genuine valour does not reside in places where courage on death is fed, And as time grows older there are no more bold men and women left, Because it is a diabolic ground where only echoes from the past haunt all, Where all are victims of a different kind of theft, That of humanity’s actual fall!”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Javid Ahmad Tak" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javid-ahmad-tak/war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-followed-by-a-ceasefire-swaths-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Best-war-poems" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javid-ahmad-tak/war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-followed-by-a-ceasefire-swaths-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/javid-ahmad-tak-22175_best-war-poems_war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-follow_2301882.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/javid-ahmad-tak-22175_best-war-poems_war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-follow_2301882.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b25/javid-ahmad-tak-22175_best-war-poems_war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-follow_2301882.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“War and ceasefire There was a war followed by a ceasefire, Swaths of land lay covered in ashes and dead men…” — Javid Ahmad Tak", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Javid Ahmad Tak", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/javid-ahmad-tak/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“War and ceasefire There was a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javid-ahmad-tak/war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-followed-by-a-ceasefire-swaths-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/javid-ahmad-tak/war-and-ceasefire-there-was-a-war-followed-by-a-ceasefire-swaths-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```